By Mike Petraglia | Comments Off on Tyler Seguin has a whole new appreciation for Patrice Bergeron

He didn’t think it would be this hard.

But after skating up and down the center of the ice and going side to side in his first game as a center, Tyler Seguin has a whole new appreciation and understanding of exactly what Patrice Bergeron does.

In his first game replacing the concussed Bergeron, Seguin skated 19 shifts in 19 minutes with Jaromir Jagr on his right and Brad Marchand on his left. Seguin finished with three shots in Boston’s 1-0 win over the Devils Thursday night at the Garden.

“First shift I was like, ‘Bergy, I appreciate you a lot more right now,'” Seguin said. “I guess the first period I felt it a little bit more, but, again, as the game progressed I felt like I could use my speed a little bit more, and it was just about finding those areas. It’s one thing from being a centerman and then going to the NHL, but it’s another thing from going center to wing in the NHL and then going back to center, so it’s going to take some adjustment.”

His coach could certainly see a difference.

“Well, it brought us what we thought. Tyler is obviously realizing, probably, how tough it is for Bergy to play that position, because playing in the D-zone, there’s a lot of territory to cover as a centerman, and when pucks are going from one side to the other, he wasn’t always there,” coach Claude Julien added. “That’s the work in progress, and that’s what we expected, and that’s what he’s going to get used to. But overall, that line was fine. Again, you’ve got to remember there’s a Hall of Famer on that line with two young players who were probably looking for him a bit too much versus making the plays or taking the shots like they should’ve. Hopefully, it will wear off and it will get better.”

Seguin also has a new appreciation of the responsibility Bergeron carries in the face-off circle. Seguin won just three-of-12 but vowed to get better with practice. Read the rest of this entry »

Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli confirmed at his post-NHL trade deadline press conference that center Patrice Bergeron suffered a concussion in Tuesday’s 3-2 win over Ottawa. SportsNet’s Nick Kypreos was the first to report the news on Wednesday.

“I talked to Patrice,” Chiarelli said. “Patrice suffered a concussion, described as moderate. I talked to him about [4 p.m. Wednesday]. He was in very good spirits. He was out walking today. He was annoyed at it. He was emotional Tuesday night. I don’t know when you’ll see him [playing] again. I don’t think you’ll see him [Thursday].”

Bergeron lunged at Ottawa forward Colin Greening in the Bruins’ zone in the second period Tuesday and hit his head on Greening’s elbow/forearm as the Ottawa forward was shooting. Bergeron left the game and did not return.

This is the fourth concussion suffered in Bergeron’s career, with the last one prior to Tuesday’s occurring in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Flyers.

By Annie Maroon | Comments Off on Barry Pederson on D&C: Jaromir Jagr ‘a star, not a superstar’

NESN’s Barry Pederson talked to Dennis & Callahan on Wednesday about the impact Jaromir Jagr could have on the Bruins, what he’ll have to do to fit into the B’s system, and Patrice Bergeron‘s situation after leaving Tuesday’s game with an injury.

Pederson said he thinks Jagr will thrive in a supporting role, similar to the one he played in Philadelphia last year, not to mention in Pittsburgh when he first broke into the league.

“He’s coming to a good team that he’s just trying to make great,” Pederson said. “He’s probably a star, not a superstar. He’s definitely a top-six forward, and I think the other thing it does for this team is it brings in competition. For the coach, he doesn’t have to do a lot of yelling, or say a lot of things in the press. Just, ‘OK you’re not going on the top two lines, I’ve got another forward here, a Hall of Famer that wants to come in here and play.’ ”

Pederson played with Jagr on the Cup-winning 1990-91 Penguins team in Jagr’s first season in the NHL. He said Jagr had his own “Euro fashion” off the ice, but that on the ice he exhibited the qualities that have kept him among the league’s top players to this day.

“He came over with all kinds of raw talent,” Pederson said. “You have to remember, on that team, with [Mario] Lemieux there, he was the guy that was kind of making all those eyes turn. But what I remember about [Jagr] the most at a young age was how gifted he was, lower body down. Similar to aRay Bourque where you have those strong legs and that big butt, you couldn’t knock him over. He had a great release. He’d go to those dirty areas and had a knack for getting in front and scoring big goals.”

Despite Jagr causing some locker-room controversy in his earlier days, Pederson said he believes Jagr has matured into a veteran leader.

“I think you’re going to be surprised as to what you’re going to hear in the dressing room,” Pederson said. “When you read all the accounts of Philadelphia ‘¦ they think they really missed his presence in the locker room. I think he’s really matured as a person and i think that’s really going to show here.”

Patrice Bergeronleft Tuesday’s win over the Senators after colliding with Ottawa’s Colin Greening early in the second period and did not return. Following the game, Claude Julien offered no update on his condition.

Replays showed that Bergeron hit his head on Greening’s elbow/forearm while Greening was attempting to shoot in the Bruins zone. Rich Peverley took Bergeron’s place on the second line with Brad Marchand and Tyler Seguin.

Bergeron, who has had three concussions in his career, left the ice and went down the tunnel following the collision. Bergeron’s last concussion came in 2011 against the Flyers.

Though Julien had no update on Bergeron and wouldn’t talk about the prospect of playing without him, Bruins teammates expressed concern for the reigning Selke winner.

“I haven’t talked to him yet, but we all know what kind of guy and what kind of player he is,” David Krejcisaid. “We don’t have to talk about it. It sucks, but I hope it’s nothing serious and he’s going to be back in the lineup soon.”

The Bruins got both Jaromir Jagr and a win over Ottawa on Tuesday, but it still might end up being a shaky day for them as Patrice Bergeron was knocked out of the game in the second period against the Senators.

The B’s got goals from David Krejci, Tyler Seguin and Nathan Horton in a 3-2 victory that put them one point behind the Canadiens in the Northeast Division. The Habs have 51 points to the Bruins’ 50 through 35 games.

Here’s what went right and wrong for the B’s:

WHAT WENT RIGHT FOR THE BRUINS

– Horton is producing like a man who has no interest in losing his spot on the top line to Jagr. He broke a third-period 2-2 tie by scoring his fourth goal in as many games after scoring just once in the previous 14 contests. The veteran right wing has been inconsistent this season, but he’s really making that top line a tough one to break up.

– Give Matt Bartkowski credit for staying focused and turning in some solid play despite knowing that the Bruins tried to trade him for Jarome Iginla. Bartkowski saved a goal in the second period, when Khudobin made a kicksave on Mika Zibanejad and kicked the rebound out to the bottom for the right circle. A Senators player was inches from knocking it in with plenty of open net, but Bartkowski got a stick on it just in time to break it up.

WHAT WENT WRONG FOR THE BRUINS

– Bergeron was knocked out of the game on his third shift of the second period with what appeared to at the very least be some sort of upper-body injury. Bergeron lunged at Colin Greening while the Washington center was trying to shoot, and Bergeron’s head awkwardly hit Greening’s elbow/forearm. Bergeron left the game and did not return.

Though the Bruins offered no details on the injury, the play was obviously concerning given his history with concussions. He has had three in his NHL career, the most recent of which came in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Flyers in 2011.

Bergeron leads the Bruins with 31 points (10 goals and a team-high 21 assists) this season.

– The Bergeron injury wasn’t the only one for the Bruins. Dougie Hamilton threw a hit on Erik Condra in the Bruins’ zone, and though the play got a massive cheer as both players went down, Hamilton couldn’t finish his shift. Upon getting up, he slowly tried to get in position before calling for a line change. He went straight down the tunnel and left the ice for about 10 minutes real time before returning to the Bruins’ bench with five and a half minutes to play.

– The Bruins appeared to get the save of the year from Anton Khudobin when he lost his stick diving across the net to stop a bid from Andre Benoit after being out of position. The play was reviewed, however, and the replay showed that Benoit’s slapshot had indeed gone in and bounced back out.

– Benoit’s goal tied the game at two, making for the Bruins’ latest blown lead in the third period this season. Boston has now blown leads in seven games this season and are 4-3-2 when leading after two periods.

NESN’s Andy Brickley talked with Mut & Merloni on Thursday about the Jarome Iginla trade, Wednesday’s shootout loss to the Canadiens, and the tremendous play of Patrice Bergeron.

Brickley said of Iginla’s decision to go to Pittsburgh: “I don’t think it’s the timeline that’s the difference here. What it comes down to, and this is the bothersome part for me certainly, the Calgary Flames, their ownership and their management team and their responsibility to their fan base, they need to make the best deal possible for the future of that franchise. If you just stack up the two deals, the Pittsburgh offer and the Boston offer, there’s no comparison. The Boston offer is better. It leads you to believe that Jarome Iginla shortened his list, shortened it to one team when the deals were on the table.”

With this blockbuster falling apart, Brickley said that a trade may be necessary, but also some key players need to play better and get healthy for the stretch run.

“They’ve got to have [Johnny] Boychuk healthy,” Brickley said. “They’ve got to have [Adam] McQuaid healthy. They’ve got to have [Chris] Kelly healthy. They’ve got to have [Milan] Lucic and [Nathan] Horton playing a far more consistent game than you’re getting right now. … They need their power play to be a little sharper than it’s been. You hope that work in progress finds a good streak when you get into the postseason and then you have to add to that. They definitely need another defenseman, there’s no question about it.”

If the B’s do decide to go the route of acquiring a new player, they will have until Wednesday at 3 p.m. to complete a deal.

“I really like [Mark Streit],” Brickley said. “It all comes down to, ‘Do you think he’s a good fit? Can you afford him, and what’s the price to get him?’ It’s always that. That’s always the formula, those are always the variables. He would be definitely a guy that I think Bruins fans would appreciate. I think he’d fit in nicely here and I think he gives the Bruins far more options — versatility, flexibility on their back end.”

The Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second period with goals from Joffrey Lupul and Nikolai Kulemin. The Bruins were able to come back with goals from Milan Lucic and Bergeron, with Lucic scoring his first goal in 16 games. Demoted to the third line for Monday’s contest, Lucic took a pass from Rich Peverley and flew past two defenders to give himself a breakaway on which he beat Leafs netminder James Reimer to make it 2-1 in the second period. Bergeron took advantage of some sloppy defensive play from Toronto in the third to tie the game.

The win improved the Bruins’ record to 21-7-3, pulling them even with the Canadiens with 45 points. Both the B’s and Habs have played 31 games this season, and the Bruins will host the Canadiens Wednesday at TD Garden.

WHAT WENT RIGHT FOR THE BRUINS

– Daniel Paille was undoubtedly a beneficiary of the new lines, as he had scoring chance after scoring chance while skating on Patrice Bergeron’s trio. Paille’s chances weren’t limited to even strength, however, as a spin move he pulled around Dion Phaneuf with the Leafs on the power play in the second period nearly yielded a shorthanded goal for the Bruins. Paille led the Bruins with five shots through two periods.

– Bergeron had all the time in the time in the world with the puck after Dougie Hamilton fed him from behind the net. Dion Phaneuf was front of the net when Bergeron got the puck but didn’t make much of an effort on taking Bergeron out of the play. The drowsy effort from Phanuf allowed Bergeron to handle the puck just long enough before beating Reimer with a backhander.

– More of a general observation, but Julien reverted back to the team’s original lines about five minutes into the third period. Furthermore, when the game went to 4-on-4 play following matching roughing minors to Phaneuf and Andrew Ference, Krejci was paired with Lucic while Bergeron skated with Marchand.

WHAT WENT WRONG FOR THE BRUINS

– The line of David Krejci between Brad Marchand and Nathan Horton moved the puck well and created chances, but they didn’t get the puck on net. The line combined for three shots on goal through two periods and missed the net on multiple chances. Early on in the first period, Krejci fed Marchand in front, only to have Marchand’s bid sail to the left of Reimer. Horton has just one goal the last 14 games.

– Speaking of Horton, both he and Seguin had zero shots on goal in regulation and in overtime. That’s not fantastic.

– Aaron Johnson had a forgettable second period, as his hit on Lupul gave the Maple Leads the power play on which Lupul scored to make it 1-0. Later in the period, he had a shot blocked that led to the long pass through the neutral zone past he and Andrew Ference to give Kulemin a breakaway.